In the aftermath of the just concluded party primaries,
there are lots and lots of lessons we have learnt as Kenyans. The ensuing
results were both surprising and unexpected.

Majority of the outcomes signaled a generational and
ideological realignment in the Kenyan political scene. In one way or another,
the end product highlighted some fundamental truths about the Kenyan voter,
lessons that political leaders should heed beyond these primaries.

Even though the primaries had their own issues of electoral
malpractices and at times outright rigging, the people’s general will prevailed
in most of these cases.

Amongst the lessons we need to carry with us include:-

1. Wanjiku is
unforgiving and never forgets.

Politicians fond of playing games with Wanjiku have to brace
themselves for her ‘nyaunyo’ when her
time to make decision comes. Wanjiku this time showed us that she can be very
ruthless towards politicians known to cheat on her, disrespect or mishandle her.

Lesson:

As a
politician, always mind your language. Always match your actions with your
words because when the people say no, nothing can change that.

2. Never lose touch with Wanjiku.

The primaries also taught us that one can never afford to
lose touch with Wanjiku. Wanjiku needs to ‘feel’ you even when you aint there. These
primaries can be viewed as a form of protest vote, a kind of whip to punish the
‘wrong doers’.

The vote was Wanjiku’s language to declare who is boss and
those who had lost touch with the electorate were humiliated and shown the
door.

Candidates who were
able to captivate their audience’s attention and achieve an emotional
connection with the electorate carried the day.

Lesson:

Politicians must resonate with Wanjiku. Politicians must be there to share her triumphs
and her pains. Wanjiku wants politicians who are part of their lives.

The primaries saw so many political big shots floored by
very little known aspirants despite of their political and financial muscle.

However much these political bigwigs tried to hold ground,
it was apparent that the ground couldn’t hold.

Lesson:

You can
make it only if you try.

4. Never underestimate your opposition.

Among the renown
politicians who lost in the just concluded nominations did underestimate the strengths
of their opposition. Some of the newcomers were taken to be meek and very
harmless by being greenhorns in the political arena.

However, having been
aware of their shortcomings, the newcomers presented themselves directly to the
electorate and sold their ideas one on one. They endeared themselves to Wanjiku
and ended up being a darling to the electorate.

Lesson:

Always
keep your ears on the ground and never lose focus. You may not know what hit
you in the first place.

5. Know the demographics
of your area.

Politicians who generalised issues during their campaigns lost
ground in some areas as each region is unique in its own rights.

Candidates who scored most were those who were very
conversant with the challenges and needs of their electorate. Things worked so
well especially for those who used locals to spearhead the agenda in each area.
By ignoring or failing to address social issues meant that they lost touch with
the disgruntled locals.

At times politicians got rejected by the electorate just for
the mere reason that those leading their campaigns in a particular area were
considered ‘foreigners’ or were the ‘enemies’ of the locals.

Lesson:

In politics,
there is nothing like one-size-fits-all. Every place is unique in its own right
and politicians need to address these uniqueness wherever they go out to
campaign. They must also adjust their
content to their audience’s preferences and interests.

6. It's no longer
business as usual.

Another strong message that Wanjiku relayed to politicians
is that she was no longer ready to be taken for granted. The era when
politicians wooed the electorate with stupid goodies is long gone.

Wanjiku wants
someone who will bring forth permanent solutions to her woes.

For the first time we have seen politicians starting to sell
their candidature through manifestos. We have also witnessed them trying to outdo
each other in development projects and programmes aimed at empowering Wanjiku.

This is just but a beginning of a new era where issue-based
politics will start taking centre stage in campaigns. People are more or less
not getting carried away by propaganda and rhetoric. They are simply demanding
to know what the politicians can deliver.

Lesson:

It may
not be time yet but Kenyan politics are on the verge of being issue-based.

7. People are yearning
for real change.

For many years now, party nominations were never taken
seriously by majority of Kenyans and were left to a handful of ‘idlers’ to decide on who takes the
mantle to run on particular party ticket in the General Elections.

This year, things were different and very many people turned
up to nominate candidates to fly their parties’ tickets. The turnout was rather
so high just like in the general elections. This was a clear message that
people were tired of others making important decisions on their behalf. It was
a demonstration that they were tired of the status quo and were determined to
correct all errors committed in previous regimes.

This became evident as results started streaming. Majority
of the incumbents and those perceived to be forced into people’s throats were shown
the door.

Lesson:

Every
vote counts. Party primaries are what determine the future. By failing to
participate in the nominations, you assist the wrong people to get into office.
Everyone must participate in the primaries as this will be the only way to get
the change you want.

Thousands of the elites did cast their vote. They were very
busy following the proceedings online, in bars or offices as ‘analysed’ the results by either cursing
the people for the outcome or praising them for ‘punishing’ those they didn’t like.

As Wanjiku spent the whole day in the scorching sun waiting
for her chance to nominate their favourite candidates, the elite were busy
lazing around, too proud to be seen lining up with ‘hawa ma-idlers’.

Eventually, their inaction led to one or two bad leaders sneak
through the primaries thereby enhancing their chances of being elected as the
next set of leaders. This was so unpatriotic of them.

Lesson:

Bad
people are voted into office by those who don’t vote. As much as we demonise
the commoners for voting in the wrong people, we are equally wrong (if not
worse) for not participating in bringing in the right leaders.

9. Social Media is powerful stuff.

The primaries this year were in a very great extent
influenced by the political wars staged online. Social media dictated what was actually
debated offline by the general public and it is through the same platform that
some of the political bigwigs lost in the primaries.

Politicians who emerged most potent online reigned supreme
as their message spread so fast and was easily disseminated offline to the
traditional ‘analogue’ populace.

Lesson:

Social
media is a lethal weapon whose power cannot be underestimate. If well taken
advantage of, it may be your ticket to victory.

10. Generation Y factor
in elections.

Youth born in the late 80s and early 90s had a very
significant impact in the just concluded party primaries.

This is a generation generally marked by an increased use
and familiarity with communications, media and digital technologies. Their
upbringing is marked by an increase in a liberal approach to issues including politics
and economics. They are no pushovers and they will make decisions out of what
they deem right for them and not what the older generation wish them to.

In a departure from past voting patterns, these millennials
were so keen on candidates they resonated well with — those they perceived to
understand them better regardless of what the other generations thought about
their choice.

Due to this ‘civic-mindedness’, they were attracted to candidates
who had a strong sense of community and those they deemed smarter and prudent.

Lesson:

The
millennials will continue pulling surprises in the coming elections and
politicians should expect them to rebel on common trends associated with their predecessor.
Anyone wanting to succeed in politics must resonate with this generation.
Please note, the electorate are getting younger by day.

11. Our politics are
messier than we thought.

However much the political parties try to portray the
picture that their primaries were free and fair, so much underhand dealings
messed the whole exercise, much of which was perpetrated from the party
headquarters as well as by the candidates themselves.

There were cases of winners being denied their victory
through double voting, manipulation of results and also intimidation of voters,
agents and the candidates themselves. Rules governing the exercise were also breached
and used selectively in favour of certain candidates.

For instance, voters believed to be supporting certain
candidates were allowed to vote using their ID cards even though their names
did not appear in the register of the polling station. This loophole was used
by the perpetrators to vote more than once and in more than one polling
station.

On the contrary, voters thought to be supporting the
unfavoured candidates got turned away whenever their names failed to appear in
the register. In a few cases, the clerks would deliberately deny people a
chance to vote, claiming that their names were missing in the register.

We still
have a long way to go in terms of political fairness and integrity among those
mandated to execute serious exercises such as an election. Some of our leaders,
even at the helm of the national leadership, preach water but take wine. We need
to watch them very carefully.

12. Fake Opinion Polls

Predictive analytics is usually lauded as a crystal ball to
guide people with data necessary to make certain choices. But if what we
witnessed with majority of these polls, Kenyans now take each poll with a pinch
of salt. They now regard predictive analytics to be a waste of time.

Some of the candidates polled to be ‘winning by a landslide’ ended up losing dismally.

Is it possible that people lie to pollsters? Or do some
people fear share their loyalties with pollsters? Or is it a case of ‘He who pays the pipercalls the tune?’

The same can be said of the media houses in Kenya. Majority of
them act in tune with the highest bidder.

Lesson:

We need to rethink the laws that govern opinion
polls as they seem to be abused by unscrupulous people and greedy pollsters. There
is also a need to keep regulating what the media houses relay to the general
public lest they end up being recipe to chaos and bloodshed.

The wave of change
has swept the populous Thika Town Constituency after voters of the Jubilee
Party sent home all the sitting MCAs except one during the just concluded party
primaries.

Among the 5 MCAs who
constitute Thika Town Constituency, only Gatuanyaga Ward Representative Cecilia
Wamaitha survived the primaries in the race that saw her colleagues given a
vote of no confidence.

Wamaitha won the
seat after garnering 2,337 votes to beat all her competitors.

Township MCA Kennedy
Mwangi (Kentams) lost to Andrew Ndirangu who had 3,635 votes against the
incumbent’s 1,300 votes who was followed closely by Joseph Minyaru with 1,064
votes.

Things in the
neighbouring Hospital Ward were not so different after incumbent Mwangi
Wamwangi (J BEE) also suffered the same fate after a Dunson Mburu turned out
victorious with2,375 votes.

In Kamenu Ward,Raphael
Chege’s with 4, 627 votes were enough to end Elizabeth Muthoni Hussein’s 25 –year
tenure in office. Robert Gitonga came second with 1,674 votes with Muthoni coming
a distant third with 914 votes.

Joakim Mwangi beat
all storm to emerge victorious in Ngoliba Ward by garnering 2,369 votes. The incumbent
Gerrishon Ngige was nowhere near the prize as he was ranked among the last
in the polls with less than a hundred votes.

It all started with
Kiambu Governor William Kabogo who was handed a humiliating defeat in the hands
of Kabete MP Ferdinand Waititu (Baba Yao)who
garnered 353,604 votes against Kabogo’s 69,916 votes.

From left to right - MKU Vice-Chancellor Prof. Stanley Waudo, Chairman MKU University Council Prof. David Serem, Jane Nyutu (Member of MKU Board of Directors) and the Chief Guest Dr David Thuku, CEO Family Bank.

Graduates have been reminded that university education was
no longer geared towards preparing them for white collar jobs but rather to
initiate them into being job creators.

Speaking at the Mount Kenya University Thika Campus on Thursday
while commissioning the second cohort of apprentices of the Graduate Enterprise
Academy (GEA), Dr. David Thuku, the Managing Director & Chief Executive
Officer, Family Bank Limited praised this great program saying that it had produced
graduates who would go out to create employment.

He reminded the graduands that they were now entering a new
chapter in life full of challenges and opportunities and they needed to play their
part in helping communities improve their quality of life.

He added that he was
most impressed with the progress the academy had made in the past two years to
churn out young people from different and diverse backgrounds who would
redefine the narrative of the society, the country and be vibrant positive influencers.

“The days when we educated our youth to go ye forth and
venture primarily into white collar jobs is long gone. I have great admiration
for the emphasis the Academy places on job creation rather than being
preoccupied with job seeking, as well as life-long learning development and developing
leadership skills. I’m greatly encouraged to note that the knowledge and skills
you have acquired is going to be put to some good use in the different business
ventures you are going to pursue,” said Dr. Thuku.

While addressing the same gathering, the chairman of the
University Council Prof. David K. Serem encouraged the private sector and academia
to embrace partnerships with the government saying that this would create synergy
that would be very active in ensuring that the next generation of Kenyans is productive,
a people with a strong vision for themselves and for the society at large and hence
responsible heirs of this country.

Prof. Serem reckoned that there was great the need for youth
empowerment in Kenya and in Africa in general because of the large numbers of unemployed
or underemployed youth in Africa who were on record of being misused to cause
civil unrests that destabilise countries and undermine efforts to build more
stable, prosperous societies.

“Through GEA, MKU
should view herself as a prime institution that inculcates skills and knowledge
on innovation and entrepreneurship, equips students with a set of skills,
enabling them identify viable business ideas and providing them with a
practical approach to entrepreneurship. In this way, MKU stimulates attitudes
and behaviour that promote the capacity for collaboration, creativity and innovation
in job and wealth creation,” he said.

MKU Vice Chancellor Prof. Stanley W. Waudo reminded the
audience that universities all over the world were facilitators and catalysts
in seeking solutions to the challenges in the society including inculcation of entrepreneurial
culture among the students. He added that GEA was a facilitator and a catalyst
of creating an entrepreneurial culture.

To the 14 apprentices, Prof. Waudo said: “Take time to decide which opportunities are
really good and which ones definitely won’t work. And even in the worst case scenario,
remember that nothing is absolute. Life is a giant game of trial and error, so
don’t get blogged down in errors.”

What is GEA?

In the year 2014, the Chairman Board of Trustees Dr. Simon Gicharu launched an Enterprise
Academy program targeting MKU Alumni with business ideas. A total of 9
graduates joined a residential entrepreneurship training program between
February and May 2014 and successfully completed the program, received seed
capital and are currently in the market with their own enterprises. Since last
year, he has taken a strategic decision to establish the GEA as a spinoff of
Mount Kenya University and Equip Africa Institute.

Graduates apply and send descriptions of their startups, are short listed,
interviewed and trained through a combination of 3 weekend’s boot camps and 3
months of virtual incubation. They are networked with funding organisations and
mentors for greater prosperity of their businesses.

Witeithie residents demonstrating against the decision of Jubilee Party to declare to winners for the same seat. John Thungu (inset) was initially declared the winner before this decision was overturned under very unclear circumstances.

Confusion and outrage has engulfed Juja residents after Jubilee
Party election officials announced parallel results, with two MCA candidates
being declared winners on Wednesday in a span of half an hour at the Mang’u
High School tallying centre.

Supporters John Thungu Muniu protested the declaration of Julius
Macharia Taki as the winner of Jubilee Witeithie Ward polls.

According to Joseph Kabui who was Thungu’s agent, trouble
started when Juja MP Francis Munyua Waititu disputed the results and said that they were not reflective of
the wishes of the people of Witeithie Ward, thereby demanding for a recount.

The initial results had declared Thungu the winner with
1,171 votes against Taki’s 1,115 votes. 30 minutes later, those results were reversed
with the returning officer handing Taki the win announcing that he had garnered
1,390 votes. Thungu was then ranked second with 1,338 votes.

The announcement ignited the wrath of the residents who threatened
to disrupt the whole exercise. Thungu’s agents protested to the returning
officer arguing that those results had been doctored to favour Taki but their
pleas landed on deaf ears.

“I was an agent at Muthara Primary School polling station when
the results were announced, my candidate (Thungu) had garnered 454 votes. All
the agents signed the forms declaring the tally in that polling station. But upon
arriving at Mang’u High School, a different form, with only three signatures was
produced, indicating that Thungu had garnered 404 votes. My signature as well
as that of the rest of the agents at the polling station were not in the new
form shown at the tallying centre,” said Kabui.

The residents therefore demanded a comprehensive analysis of
how the officials arrive d at the new vote tallies which by the time they left
the centre, they had not gotten any feedback.

There were claims also that one of the vehicles used to
transport the ballots and the officers manning these primaries to the tallying
centre belonged to Taki who was a candidate in the primaries, more reason that
there might have been some underhand dealings that transpired between when the
votes left the polling centre to when they arrived at the tallying centre.

They demanded a rerun of the primaries warning that if their
will was not respected, they had numerous options at their disposal.

Talking to the press after arriving back from the Jubilee
Party Headquarters in Pangani Nairobi, Thungu said that he would pursue the
laid down mechanisms in the party to seek justice. Otherwise, he warned that if
justice did not prevail, he would go back to the people of Witeithie ward to
seek their advice on the way forward.

He blamed the party for the mess, adding that the exercise
was not free and fair.

Eng. Patrick Wainaina Wa Jungle addressing a press conference on Wednesday when he announced his defection from Jubilee Party and his resolve to vie as an independent candidate come August 8.

Powerful officials at the Jubilee Party (JP) Headquarters, Thika security
personnel and some goons were some of the people responsible for the loss of
Eng. Patrick Wainaina Wa Jungle in his bid to clinch the prestigious Thika Town
Constituency JP ticket for the August 8 General Elections.

Addressed a press conference at a Thika Hotel on Wednesday, Eng. Wainaina
complained of blatant vote stealing and rigging in the repeat party nominations
in majority of the polling centres especially those that were more inclined to
the sitting MP Alice Wambui Ng’ang’a.

1. Powerful
people at JP HQs

Wainaina lamented that some powerful individuals at the JP HQs in
Pangani manipulated the process through unfairly favouring the incumbent and
using the county administration to rig the elections.

He said that after realising some anomalies in the failed
primaries held last Friday, Wainaina went to the JP HQs to lodge his
complaints. Among his grievances were some returning officers and clerks who
were said to be favouring the incumbent in most polling stations.

“I raised my concerns at JP HQs on Monday and they have a
memorandum of the issues we raised but it was very clear from the word go that
someone at the wanted me out and was determined to achieve this unfairly. Even
after they promised me that they would reshuffle the clerks, all those clerks
who supervised last Friday’s failed elections assumed their roles in the
stations. When my team complained of the same on Tuesday morning at The Thika
Town Hall, they were harassed and intimidated by the police and other agents of
my competitor,” said Wainaina.

Wainaina said that in some polling centres where Alice had strong following, she was allowed to have as many agents inside the voting hall as she wanted, with her opponents forced to make do with only one per polling station.

He added that the 15 among those who presided over the exercise people
well known to sympathetic to the incumbent.

“Some of these people worked at the C.D.F. office under the
current MP. There were others who on Friday, acted as her agents at various polling
stations across the constituency. How do you become the judge and the bench in
your own case? It was very evident that the jury was leaning towards the incumbent
and there was no way they could be expected to deliver a just verdict,” he
lamented.

2. Tampering
of results.

Wainaina complained that there were a few cases the Returning
Officers deliberately altered the results in favour of the sitting MP. He said
that whenever concerns were raised by his agents, they got thrown out in the
full glare of police officers. He added that after the exercise, some of these
people could be heard bragging about the malpractices along the streets and
within the polling station themselves.

Wainaina also claimed that there were videos going round on social
media showing cases of elections malpractices as well as agents and opposition
supporters being harassed or beaten by both the police and Alice’s supporters.

He noted that such malpractices were more so perpetrated deep in
the night in the polling station where polling went beyond midnight.

“Just to say the least, these results were a sham and it is very
painful when the vote of any vote fail to count. This was not rigging but
direct robbery,” he said.

3. Security
forces, administration aided rigging.

The aspirant noted that from the beginning of the campaigns last
years, aspirants have been complaining of interference of the administration in
favour of the incumbent. He said that all through, their grievances fell on
deaf ears as decisions made by the authorities have always been skewed to
favour the sitting MP.

Last Tuesday, according to Wainaina, this bias became so evident
among some police officers and chiefs who sided with the incumbent’s agents and
supporters to intimidate Wainaina’s supporters and agents. In some cases, the security
forces intimidated returning officers who were not willing to cooperate.

“There was a direct intimidation in polling stations where my
competitor was very strong and in areas that the race for votes was tight. The
local administration openly favoured the incumbent in all the decisions they
made to contain the situation irrespective of who was in the wrong. In some of
these polling stations, my agents were intimidated and ejected as the MP’s
activists took over polling stations. You had no idea who was voting and who
wasn’t, or even what transpired within these polling stations in the absence of
my agents. Unfortunately for me, it was really hard to control what they were
doing as the administration was on their side,” he said.

4. Stuffed
photocopied ballots for MP.

The use of photocopied ballot papers by the JP leadership was the
most unfortunate decision the JP HQs made in these primaries, noted Wainaina. He
pointed out that some supporters of the incumbent went and photocopied ballots meant
for the MP and pre-marked them in favour of the sitting MP.

Those voters known
to support the incumbent were said to have stuffed these illegal ballots within
their clothing and stuffed them into the ballot boxes meant to for the MP.

“A group of the incumbent’s supporters went round the constituency
distributing the photocopied ballots and assisted them to smuggle ballot papers
into the boxes. That explains why the total votes cast for the MPs did not
tally with any of the other seats. Those for the MPs way exceeded those of the
MCAs, Senators, Women Reps and the governors,” said Maina Theuri, the chairman
of Wainaina’s campaign team.

He also noted that people known to be supporters of his opponent were allowed to vote using an ID card and their names written down in an exercise book whenever their names missed in the IEBC/Party registers. These privileges were not accorded to supporters of Wa Jungle or Morris Mburu for they were all turned away.

Vie as an
Independent Candidate.

All in all, said that he would not seek redress from the party
leadership as it was now evident to him that they had a preferred candidate. He
therefore officially resigned from Jubilee Party and would seek election as an
independent candidate. He exuded confidence that he would beat all the odds and
emerge triumphant come August 8 despite having to work against the forces
behind his ouster from the party.

“Well, besides all what they did to rig themselves in, they only
managed to beat me with barely a thousand votes. I refuse to concede defeat. So,
let’s meet on August 8 and may the will of Thika people prevail. Otherwise, I
thank all of you for the support you accorded me. Alluta Continua,” said
Wainaina.

Support
President Uhuru.

He said that he was in of support President Uhuru Kenyatta’s
reelection bid and would seeks votes for him and his deputy as he solicited for
his own votes for MP. He added that his mission to transform Thika was still in
course and none of his programmes would stop.

Thika Town MP Alice Ng'ang'a celebrates her victory with supporters after being declared winner for the Jubilee Party primaries on Wednesday.

Tens of thousands of Thika residents streamed to the polls on Tuesday to bring to a close after one of the fiercest
campaigns in history.

As dusk fell, there were long lines in front of polling
stations in many areas, despite pundits suggesting that the region suffered
some voter apathy and were not enthused to participate in the repeat Jubilee
Party nominations after the botched Friday primaries.

After a grueling 24 hour exercise, Jubilee Party’s
Constituency Returning Officer Ann Kamiti announced the results of the for all
the seats.

It was jubilation at Thika Town hall tally centre after area
MP Alice Wambui Ng’ang’a was declared winner of the Jubilee Party primaries
for Thika Town parliamentary seat.

She was declared at around 11 am having polled 15,880 votes against
her closest rival Patrick Wainaina Wa Jungle who garnered 14, 731 votes.

Morris Mburu came third with 3,127 votes.

Addressing her supporters after the exercise, Ms. Alice
thanked the residents of Thika for endorsing her for a second term adding that her
focus now would be turned towards ensuring that President Uhuru Kenyatta get
re-elected for his final term.

“I am extremely humbled by the kind of confidence the people
of Thika have shown me in nominating me in the Jubilee Party primaries. Now
that I have cleared that hurdle, my focus is now one, to fight the opposition’s
quest to derail the government’s development agenda,” said Hon. Alice.

She said that her win and that of Ferdinand Waititu as the
gubernatorial candidate for Kiambu would guarantee harmony in the area,
translating into development for the people of Thika and Kiambu in general.

She appealed to her competitors to shelve their quests and
come together for the good of the residents of Thika.

Other results announced included a win for Andrew Ndirangu
as the Township Ward MCA Jubilee candidate with 3,635, Dunson Mburu (Hospital)
with 2,375 votes, Raphael Chege (Kamenu) with 4, 627 votes, Cecilia Wamaitha
(Gatuanyaga) with 2,369 and Joakim Mwangi (Ngoliba) with 2,369 votes.

Ferdinand Waititu beat William Kabogo for the gubernatorial
ticket with 27,739 votes and 6,070 votes respectively.

Some of the scenes in Thika's polling centres on Tuesday during the repeat Jubilee Party Primaries.

Jubilee Party repeat primaries kicked off in all polling
stations across Thika Town Constituency with minimal incidences having been
reported.

Jubilee seems to
have learnt its lesson from last Friday’s confusion and disorder as the process
went on swiftly in majority of the centres. Most of them were already
opened by 7am with long queues already formed.

Delays and confusion marred the exercise in several
stations. The morning session was characterised with complaints ranging from
attempted stealing of ballots to delays in starting the process that were
construed to mean sleight of hand as Kenyan public are conditioned to believe
any deviation from their expectations is informed by mischief.

There were cases of some political brokers hovering around
the polling stations trying to influence the voting pattern by whispering the
names of their preferred candidates to would be voters. This scheme was more so
at the gates to the polling centres and as the voters were heading to cast the
votes as the perpetrators pretended to ‘assist’ them.

However, voters who spoke to Thika Town Today lauded the
process saying the will of the people, “will prevail.”

“There is order unlike last time. No party member is being
turned away,” said one voter in Township Ward as he cast his vote a Thika
Stadium polling station.

Kiambu senator, Paul Kimani Wamatangi thanked the Jubilee Party for the organisation of the repeat
primaries, hoping that the will of the people would prevail. He was also happy
that the party had increased the number of people handling the exercise.

However, he pleaded
for patience among the electorate saying that failure to do so would mean a few
people deciding their fate for the next five years.

“Let’s not mind the length
of time we wait here to exercise your fundamental right to choose your leaders.
You better waste this one day that loss the entire five years having allowed
the wrong leaders be voted into office by a few people,” said Wamatangi.

Security was beefed
up just in case some people decided to cause chaos.

By the time the doors
to most polling stations were closed at 6pm, long queues were still visible
with people still patient to wait for their turn to cast their vote.

Former Gatundu North MP Hon. Clement Kung’u Waibara (extreme right) receiving his Man of The Month Trophy for February 2017 from MAWE Chairperson Nderitu Njoka. With them is Kennedy Mwaura, who is an executive member of MAWE.

Men’s rights activist Nderitu Njoka has made a passionate appeal to
the Jubilee Government to create a Family Affairs Ministry in order to ensure a
more comprehensive and participatory approach to tackling the country’s social
challenges and create programmes that will help to address social justice for
both men and women.

This ministry, according to Mr. Njoka, who is Maendeleo ya Wanaume
Organisation's (MAWE) chairperson, is supposed to play a coordinating role in
the legislative process to promote the ideal family in which the father was the
head of the family and the wife an assistant to her husband.

Mr. Njoka said that the current framework in the laws and
government programming was skewed in favour of the woman and the girl-child,
totally discriminating the man as the head of the family as well as the
boy-child.

He added that part of the reasons why the family institution
was at crossroads was the disempowerment of the man in the family.

Speaking while launching their inaugural ‘Man
of the Month Award’ ceremony in Thika, Njoka said that studies done in
the country this year indicated a steep rise in violence against men and the
boy-child especially from their female counterparts. He reckoned that part of
the reason was that the woman had been so empowered both financially and by law
to the disadvantage of the man, leaving the man at the mercy of the wives.

“The government has instituted so many laws that impact
negatively to the well-being of the man. They have also initiated various funds
to empower the woman and the girl-child but none for the men. Who said that all
men above the age of 35 years are rich? This is the reason why men are being violently
attacked by their wives at home because of their financial incapability,” said
Njoka.

The MAWE chairperson said that his organisation would
continue advocating for gender equity and programmes that enhanced male gender
empowerment.

“We are also going to demand for the disbandment of the
UWEZO and Women Funds and in their place we have a Family Fund that will cater
for all the members of the family including the man as the head of the family,”
he added.

Kennedy Mwaura, who is an executive member of MAWE, said
that it was the high time the system stopped to look down on the male gender. He
said that the society had been made to believe that it was okay when a woman
hit a man thus encouraged more violence against the male gender.

“It is big news when a man hits a woman, but everyone has
treated it as comedy when a woman physically violates the man. This is
unacceptable and we cannot allow that,” warned Mwaura.

It is in this same vein that the organisation introduced the
‘Man
of the Month Award’ to acknowledge men who have made a significant
contribution to the general welfare of the man and the boy-child.

In this regard, His Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta won
the first award for this year (January) for his exemplary efforts to alleviate
the status of the boy-child and male gender by fighting illicit alcohol and drug
abuse.

According to MAWE, President Uhuru saved over 2 million male
young men from extinction when he rescued them from the scourge.

The nominee for the month of February 2017 is former Gatundu
North MP Hon. Clement Kung’u Waibara who used his personal resources to help a
5 year old boy who was assaulted by his class teacher causing severe genital
mutilation that landed him in hospital.

Waibara helped to raise over sh. 300,000 to see him through treatment
in both St. Mulumba Mission and the Aga Khan hospitals. The boy’s bill has now
amounted to over sh. 1.5 million.

Daniel Ndambuki aka Churchill or Mwalimu King’ang’i is the
third nominee for the MAWE ‘Man of the Month Award’. Mwalimu
King’ang’i won the hearts of the judges for his noble contribution in mentoring
the youth and in particular the boy-child through comedy as a lifestyle career
via his Churchill Laugh Industry’s TV
programme.

Both the president and Churchill were awarded in absentia due
to other prior commitments.

While receiving his trophy and the MAWE gold life membership
certificate, Hon. Waibara promised, if elected as the next Gatundu North MP, to
legislate a law in Parliament to protect the boy-child from any form of
discrimination. He also said that he would lobby for the scrapping of the women
representative position in the constitution as this was one of the ways used to
discriminate against men.

AFC Leopards has edged
out Thika United 2-1 in a Kenyan Premier League (KPL) clash on Sunday at Thika
Sub-County Stadium.

Goals from Ghanaian forward Gilbert Fyamenyo and Whyvonne
Isuza were enough to secure three points for AFC Leopards.

Ingwe came
into the match aiming at collecting maximum points to move to the second
position after managing to garner 10 points from the initial five matches of
the league.

It was the hosts who showed intention of winning early on,
trying to go for an opener in the fifth minute, as they won a free-kick taken
by Eugene Mukangula, however it was cleared by the AFC Leopards defense.

AFC Leopards reacted by attacking more often, winning
several corners that unfortunately bore no fruits as Thika United defenders
cleared the dangers. The 12-times league champions increased the tempo which
the hosts struggled to cope with; and they resorted to play cautiously.

A dominant AFC Leopards made their intentions clear early in
the match after Whyvonne Isuza pressured the Thika United defense, forcing an
error from Dennis Odhiambo who in turn released a feeble back pass but Isuza’s
final shot did not trouble Eliud Emase in the Thika goal.

The hosts had their fair share of chances with Eugene
Mukangula getting his first attempt on goal with a curling free-kick that did
not trouble Ian in goal.

In the 37th minute, Gilbert Fiamenyo picked a pass from Isuza in the edge of the
box, left several Thika United defenders for the dead before firing past Emase
from a tight angle to send the match into the break with Ingwe in the driver’s
seat.

Despite regular pressure from Ingwe, the hosts
held on to ensure they do not concede more goals in the first half.

On resumption, a better looking Thika United side in a bid
to restore parity piled pressure from the onset with Nigerian forward Chibueze
Longinus making a solo run but the resultant shot went wide. Katerrega was at
it again, dribbling on his favorite left foot before sending in a low cross
that Isuza superbly slotted in with a full stretch for Leopards’ second in the
69th minute.

In a much balanced affair, a series of end to end attacks
ensued with the hosts stringing beautiful passes with nothing to show for but
Mzee Salim would try an ambitious shot from yards out which flew over the bar.
Dancun Otieno could have added a third goal for Leopards late into the second
stanza after playing nice give and go passes with Fyamenyo, but his shot went
straight to the keeper.

Thika United were reduced to ten men after defender Christopher
Oruchum was sent off with five minutes left on the clock after an infringement
on Katerrega that earned him a second yellow.

However, that did not affect the team as Salim pulled one
back for Thika deep into stoppage time with a fine shot that came from a melee
inside the area.

The hosts' quest to clinch a point from the tie, piled
pressure on the Leopards but their efforts did not yield fruit. Fyamenyo would
have killed off the game minutes later with a thumping header from an in swinger
from substitute Nyakha, his effort missing the target by a whisker.

The result means that AFC Leopards go second in the
standings with 13 points. Thika United remains 14th with 6 points.

Some of the dramatic scenes that characterised polling in Thika during Friday's Jubilee Party nominations.

Friday evening Jubilee Party annulled all its primaries countrywide
and rescheduled the voting for Monday and Tuesday this week, citing inadequate
preparations for the high voter turnout. The nominations were marred by
chaos, long delays, insufficient ballot papers, missing names and general
confusion.

At stake are hundreds of MP races, county assembly
seats and governorships.

In Thika, police on Friday fired in the air and tear lobbed
tear-gas canisters to disperse rowdy crowds angered by delays in the start of
Jubilee nominations among other irregularities.Youth
shouting and wailing stormed various school polling centres disrupting the
whole exercise after it became apparent that there were no more ballots.

Even though more than 60,000 officials had worked to prepare
for Friday’s primaries,the
process kicked off to a stormy start, the exercise was much disorganised and
had to start very late. In all polling stations, ballot papers were very few. Those
who had recently registered as voters during the mass voter registration or recently
transferred to other polling centres found their names missing in the register.

So, what went wrong?

According to sources privy to Jubilee Headquarters in
Pangani, internal differences among those responsible for the exercise plus
individual business interests were some of the reasons that caused the mess in
the nominations.

It is said that after changes were made at the secretariat, previous
arrangements for the polls were altered and budgets reviewed downwards with
some things either discarded or whittled down significantly.These movements unsettled the original
plans a great deal at a time the party was bogged down by a myriad of issues
including the smart cards fiasco.

For instance, the original plan was to print out a total of
29,093,240 ballots all the five positions. In the ensuing changes, ballots papers were
reduced from 90% of the 2013 voters to 50% of the current voter estimates which
were later scaled down to 40%.

The number of clerks originally planned at 6 per polling
stations were reduced to 3. Vehicles which were to be hired to distribute the
materials from the county offices were also axed from the list, leaving a
vacuum. A lot more drastic cuts were made on provisions for fuel, ballot boxes,
projectors, stationary, transport personnel and coordinators among others.

In general, the carefully planned total budget of Sh. 543,318,420
covering stationery, ballots, personnel, machines was scaled down to Sh. 232,745,920.
The reductions significantly changed the dynamics of the primaries as
candidates of the five positions on offer whipped huge voter turn-outs in their
areas. In the revised plan, most polling centres received 40% what they were
originally supposed to get.

Scramble for printing
tenders.

Top party officials with patronage of senior Jubilee
leadership were also said to battle over the ballot printing tenders until the
Office of DP reportedly took over to salvage the situation.Deputy President
William Ruto will oversee the repeat of Jubilee Party primaries scheduled for Monday
and Tuesday.

President’s
Intervention.

President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is the party leader, yesterday
apologised to party voters in a speech at State House, blaming high turnout for
the irregularities.

“To the millions of party faithful who turned out to vote,
and to the thousands of party aspirants who turned out to compete for party
tickets, we unreservedly apologise for our under-preparedness for the magnitude
of the nominations exercise,” said Kenyatta.

After discussions, the party came out to explain that they
had learnt from their lesson and they would explore all possible solutions included
getting the latest IEBC register in its raw format.

A two-hour crisis meeting held at the party’s Pangani
offices headed by DP Ruto resolved that ballot papers to cover the 8
million registered members would be printed afresh. To add on that more
transport companies will be hired to ensure smooth distribution. The party said
that they will use the party register and the IEBC roll.

Thika Parliamentary aspirant Eng. Patrick Wainaina Wa Jungle
has rubbished claims going round social media platforms that he has aligned himself
to certain leaders in the county.

Wainaina sought to calm anxiety among aspirants and Thika
electorate with assurances that he had endorsed neither incumbent Governor
William Kabogo nor his main rival Kabete MP Ferdinand Waititu saying that he
had let the people of Thika to decide who they really wanted as their leaders.

Speaking briefly after a church service in Thika, Wainaina
said that he at no any given time endorsed anyone and that Thika residents were
free to vote for any candidate whom they deemed right for them.Wainaina cited
that those spreading the said propaganda were pursuing their personal interests
and were out to tarnish his name and create enmity among the people and leaders
in the constituency.

“It is quite unfortunate that any leader can propagate
falsehoods with an intent to discredit my candidature. I have no preferred
candidate for any other seat. The only candidate I have ever endorsed is President
Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto to defend their seats in the 2017
general election,” said Wainaina.

“Let me emphasise that I will work with the leaders that the
people of Thika elect and together we shall present to the county our shared
vision and agenda,” he added.

He encouraged leaders to focus more on the interests of the
voters and work towards improving their livelihoods instead of concentrating on
the negatives that would not add food on the table.

The aspirant said that he was hoping for a free fair and
democratic repeat nomination process on Tuesday and expressed confidence that
he would clinch the Thika Parliamentary seat.

He appealed to the residents to once again turn up in large
numbers to vote in the primaries on Tuesday adding the he was the best bet for
Thika Town Constituency.

However, he hoped that the Jubilee Party would this time
round be more organised and provide enough elections material so that the will
of the people of Thika prevailed.

He called on the people to exercise utmost tolerance in the
exercise adding that everyone should respect the rights of each citizen to vote
for the candidates of their choice.

“I want to tell the people of Thika that I am a peace loving
leader who will not accept anyone to disrupt the nomination exercise through
violence. I am privy to information that some people are planning to cause
chaos due to the fact that they have already sensed defeat. Elections will come
and go but the country shall remain. Our country is bigger than any individual
and for that matter, it is paramount to have peace,” said Wainaina.

One of the best things that will happen in the Jubilee Party
primaries (and the General Elections in August) is that the choices of the Kenyan
voters will be upheld. It does not matter who wins, as long as every vote will
count. That will be great.

But the menace of election rigging has been entrenched into the
Kenyan DNA and has almost become a ‘sure’ route to electoral victory,
subverting freedom and fairness in the process.

Mediocre election rigging tactics involve ballot box
snatching and stuffing, conflict between party agents and electoral staff,
illegal printing and usage of voters’ card, falsification of results as well as
tampering with the voters register as witnessed in the ongoing primaries.

But those who are smart have always devised sophisticated
methods to seal election victory by ‘remote control’. Some of these tactics do
not involve the actual voting process inside the polling booth but actually
happens in discreet outside the polling stations themselves.

The following tactics constitute some of the methods used by
sly politicians as gathered by our Thika Town Today (3T) team.

Propaganda of
defection or stepping down.

This is the most commonly used ploy to hoodwink voters. Between
now and voting time, you will hear so many cases of candidates defecting and
others stepping down for their opponents. This is a ploy to help sway the
voters in a particular manner in favour of the architects of the said
propaganda.

Bribery of voters.

The political class have always taken advantage of the
desperate citizens living in this sorry state by offering them meagre amounts
of money to dupe them into voting for them. This is usually done days before
the actual polling or on the material day before they enter the polling
station.

On the material day however, the riggers will position their
people in strategic places, most possibly about 100-200 metres from the polling
stations. Here, they identify ‘potential victims’ and convince them to vote for
their man. To soften their stand, the voters are bribed with between sh. 200
and sh. 500 depending on the nature and status of the voter.

This seems good and true to the poor masses hence they trade
their votes in that manner arguing that it’s better that candidate for they
have given them ‘something’.

They are those who will also collect voters’ cards from poor
people for some cash and confiscate them till the exercise is over. This is
usually done in areas where they do not have good support.

Vote and Collect Money.
During accreditation when voters are on the line, the riggers will whisper it
to people. A voter collects his ballot, enters the boot, thumbprints, but
before dropping it into the box, he will hold it as if blowing it for the ink
to dry so that the guy handing out the cash will see it. After voting, he goes
to the corner and get paid.

In the same vein, others will demand the voter take a photo of the marked ballot paper using their mobile phones as prove that they have voted for their candidate. After voting, the voter show the photo image in their phone to earn their money.

Casual debates

The Kenyan politician have realised that Kenyan voters are
usually an ignorant lot. They will go to a polling station with the slightest
idea of who they are going to vote for. It is not uncommon to hear people on
the lines asking “Huku MCA/MP mnachagua
nani?” etc. There is also the notion among voters that ‘sitaki kupoteza kura yangu’ so they will only vote for a candidate
they think will win.

With this in mind, the sly politician will plant their
supporters at various spots in and outside the polling stations, more so to
trigger such a discussion. Here, one of the hired debaters will pretend to be naïve
and ask the question. Another of the same group will forward the name of their
candidate, pretending that they do not know him/her so well but ‘according to
what they have gathered from the mood on the ground, this candidate seems so
popular’. In that way, they are able to convince the undecided voters into
voting for their candidate.

The hired debaters will do so in a manner that their message
reaches as many people as possible.

Triggering violence
within the polling stations.

Some politicians use violence to intimidate or coerce voters
to act against their wish. This is usually done in areas they perceive to be
their opponents’ strongholds.

The trick here is that, their supporters will wake up very
early and be among the first in the queue. This means that they will be among
the first people to cast their ballots. Guaranteed that their side have voted, one
of them will create a narrative of rigging and may be accuse some people of
being behind the vice or being transported to vote for their rival.

They will then cause commotion and eventually disrupt the
whole exercise to ensure that voting does not go on. Eventually, a good number
of voters will flee and will not come back to vote.

Supplying alcohol to
voters.

One trick used by weak
candidates is that of preparing a bash, especially on the evening prior to the
voting day. Here people perceived to be supporting an opponent are invited to
the bash where they dine till dawn. Towards the break of morning, more beer and
alcohol is supplied to ensure that the ‘revelers’ blackout into not being in a
position to go and cast their votes.

This denies their opponents
a substantial number of voters, thereby tilting the odds.

Raising unnecessary queries to attract sympathy votes.

Sly politicians will always
play the victim card to win sympathy votes. They will always seek for loopholes
and cause a scene to attract the attention of the voters on the queue. By doing
so, they will shout about an imaginary rigging plot and claim that their win is
being stolen.

After causing some mayhem
they will pretend that things are now sorted and walk out shouting about how
their victory was about to be stolen. This way, they manage to win some
sympathy votes plus some of the undecided voters who sympathise with their
plight.

Corrupting officials and agents.

Moneyed politicians will
always corrupt their way into winning elections. They will pour irresistible money
offers to both the officials and agents of the opponents within a certain
polling station to ensure they all give a blind eye to vote theft.

Vote rigging will start by
officials and agents ‘assisting’ voters to cast their ballots and in the
process cast votes to their preferred candidates.

Officials may also opt to
frustrate the voters through unnecessary delays, logistics and complicating the
voting process. In this way, some of the voters get annoyed into resigning back
to their homes without voting.

With majority of the voters
tired and eager to finish up the exercise and go home, the officials grab that
opportunity to stuff votes and allow others to double vote. Names not appear on
the voters' roll are also allowed to vote.

Transporting foreigners to vote.

Some politicians have
already imported voters from other areas to use them to win the nominations. They
will bring them to the polling stations very early in the morning in buses and
matatus.

After voting, these people
will be ferried back home and given a ‘token of appreciation’ for job well
done.

Ensuring scarcity of
voting material.

In an event the preferred candidate is in the good books of
the system, one of the methods used to steal elections is causing a hitch in
the mechanism or supplying less election materials. This interferes with the
whole exercise and at times the candidates use this opportunity to unleashed mayhem
and harass supporters of the opponents so as to disrupt the process.

Names of voters will at times deliberately miss with intent
to interfere with the entire process, thus denying legible voters their right
to vote.

All in all, the bottom line here is not who wins that
matters. A successful transition with us remaining intact is more important
than any candidate. We are deeply worried about threats of any kind by
politicians desperate for power at all costs. It is this desperation that fuels
all sorts of electoral malfeasance, particularly that thing they call “election
rigging. Furthermore, without peace, there will be no elections, let alone
economic prosperity.

One of the most apt descriptors of a voter in Kenya is perhaps a statement by political philosopher Jean- Jacques Rousseau: “man is born free, and everywhere is in chains.”

Since the last general elections in 2013, we have witnessed Kenyans’ discontent with the leaders we put in office in all forms: quiet grumbling, street demonstrations and the now very popular hashtags on social media. For the last 5yrs, we have complained about misappropriation of funds by our leaders, lack of accountability and shameless plunder of public resources. Broken health and education systems, poor infrastructure as well as limited opportunities for economic growth in the counties are a daily feature in our conversations so much so that one would be forgiven for thinking the leaders in question are an amorphous sort of donation we got from one of the more developed countries. Yet, we stood in line, patiently and made certain we voted these leaders into office. We freely, chose the chains that have bound us for the last 5 years. But that’s water under the bridge: fast -forward to 2017.

The affair:
The 2017 political campaigns have so far been as dramatic and entertaining as can be expected. We have seen the lone Member of County Assembly (MCA) aspirant who, armed with only a dream and the vitality of youth, walks from door-to- door speaking to voters and sharing his vision. For such an aspirant, there has been no thronging crowds, ululations or vernacular songs hurriedly composed in his praise. He has no financial muscle and therefore holds little appeal to would-be voters. Our affair with him has been relegated to mere curiosity and comments on how “an empty hand cannot be kissed”.

We forget that, like a majority of the youth, he’s yet to accumulate the largesse that we expect to be splashed by more mature politicians. Often times, we have dismissed him and his vision altogether.

The campaign terrain morphs into a different trajectory from the level of Member of Parliament (MP) upwards. The stakes are higher, the power games more intricate and players more hardened. This is attributable to the fact that the sphere of influence of MPs, Senators and Governors has far-reaching and multi-faceted impact on local, national and even foreign policy.

The aspirants of these positions have treated us to the usual displays of campaign showmanship; some of them sophisticated and well strategized, while others can only be described as tacky and desperate attempts at hoodwinking voters. Substantial amounts of money have been spent on campaign messaging, merchandise, teams and logistics by these aspirants. There have been allegations of money being dished in varying denominations in an attempt to make an impression on voters.

Now, whether you got fifty, one hundred shillings from all aspirants or nothing is neither here nor there: that “gifting affair” should have ended that same day. It will not count in the next 5 years. The only thing that will matter is who is representing your interests, and how his being in office will affect your life.

The nomination checklist:
After this phase of political campaigns and maneuvering quiets, nominations are the first critical stage in creating Kenya’s outlook for the next five years. Political Party nominations give voters the privilege of shortlisting the leaders they want elected into office: sinners or saints, thugs or custodians of public resources, doers or noisemakers. The nominations must therefore, be carried out rationally and with great foresight.

Here is a checklist that voters should consider “minimum expected” in the men and women we shortlist in the nominations:

1. Representation:
Think of this along the lines of selecting a defense lawyer in a murder case. This, in all intent and purposes, is a matter of life and death. You want the best and most qualified because you can’t afford to gamble with your own life, your future. You will not choose this lawyer based on friendship or association or how rich he is: you want someone who can get the job done and done expeditiously and thoroughly because there cannot be room for error. There is too much at stake.

This is the same selection process that we ought to follow during nominations and voting: we cannot afford to gamble with the future of our country, county or Wards because some politician gave you cash. Go for the person who will represent you with everything they’ve got, at every level. They must be qualified, have a thorough understanding of the issues affecting Kenya and have the diplomacy and tact to present your case successfully at every fora.

2. Character, compassion, commitment:
Character, compassion and commitment is what will make a leader stay true to the promises made and doing the right thing. A leader with the right moral compass will be committed to alleviating the suffering of not just his people, but humanity as a whole. Great leaders embody humility, courage and a high sense of accountability. You know you can count on them no matter what or how long it takes.

These are the kind of leaders who put a premium value on people and communities. Ask yourself if you can leave your little baby with the person you want to put in office. If you can’t, then do not nominate or vote for them.

3. Security and peace:
Security and peace are fundamental to sustainable development. Leaders who have been misguided to imagine that violence and chaos are fashionable need to be shut out of all governance positions. These are leaders who thrive on verbal and physical attacks and lack the capacity to persistently pursue goals that promote the wellbeing of their electorates. Their modus operandi is to respond to every mosquito bite with a hammer. They lack the basic understanding that security and peace is the conducive environment for growth in infrastructure, education, profitable businesses and job creation.

If you cannot trust a leader with a nuclear bomb code, then you have no business putting them in any public office.

3. Ability to plan, manage resources and collaborate with others:
A lot of the development challenges that we face in Kenya can be resolved through diligent management of available resources and corroborative effort. This takes a keen ability to prioritize and match development projects with the needs of the people. In this instance, it’s important to look at a candidate‘s track record: are they the kind that looks at one million shillings with a “what-can- a-million-shillings-do” retort , or are they likely to see a refurbished school library out of that one million? Do they have a sense of accountability? Are they good managers? Can they work well with other elected leaders, across the political divide?

4. Reality versus idealism:
A common and long running joke is that politicians will promise boats even in deserts. Kenya continues to face challenges that range from high unemployment rate, food insecurity to widening inequalities between the rich and the poor. Aspirants come with lofty promises and campaign manifestos that sometimes raise more fear than assurances of implementation. Nominate candidates whose skills set and track record shows they can make reality of their promises to provide sustainable solutions to the problems that we face.

5. Visionary Leaders:
Every general election gives us an opportunity for a fresh start: it’s an opportunity to give our country leadership that can generate impetus into stalled growth and turbo-charge our aspirations as a people: it’s another chance at self-determination. As we head to the nominations, it is our duty as citizens, patriots and nationalists to make certain that the woman or man we will endorse for the party ticket shares a vision for a better, united and more prosperous Kenya.

Our vote will determine whether Kenya is economically steadfast, hunger stricken or ravaged by war in the next five years. Your nominee is the face of Kenya: do not gamble with the future of Kenya.

An elderly man casting his vote for senator during the last General Elections.

By all standards, Friday’s Jubilee Party nominations will be
the ‘Final before the finale’ for the 2017 General elections especially in the
Mt. Kenya Region.

The hour of reckoning is nigh for the 8,012 aspirants
seeking elective positions on Jubilee Party tickets as the dreaded primaries
kick off. The looming nominations are causing jitters as the party grapples
with logistical and security nightmares.

Friday 21st April (and some 24th and
25th) marks an important milestone in the 2017 election calendar as Jubilee
Party picks candidates for various seats ahead of the final showdown on August
8. The fight for these seats across the counties is expected to be fierce as incumbents
seek to retain their jobs against other political heavyweights in what promises
to be a cut-throat race.

Jubilee Party is the biggest prize today for any candidate
in this region. For the aspirants, winning the party’s ticket, (depending on
the way the party will handle them) is as good as winning the elections. It will
definitely guarantee the nominees a 99% chance of being the next MCA, MP, Women
Representative, Senator or Governor.

That explains why the stakes are so high in the Jubilee
primaries and if make a mistake at these primaries, it will definitely be a
grave one. The ability to vote allows you to express your opinion and choice on
a variety of issues.

The elite amongst us represents the smartest brains but unfortunately
that intellect does not equal enthusiasm to make the changes we always complain
about. It has been a tendency among the elites,
especially in the urban areas, to treat the voting day as a day of rest or to
strike business deals.

Voting is your only way to back the issues you care about and the
representatives you think can best effect the changes you want to see. It is a civic duty and the desire of people
who care about public affairs to express themselves.

Why it’s a must for you to vote in the primaries.

1. It will give you the
power to create change you desire.

Previously, the elite and business people have always ignored
party primaries and reserved their votes for the main elections, in the
argument that they were not really important.

The end product has always been having to be ruled by the
wrong leaders who, in most cases, have bought their way into nominations. Their
stake has always been decided by a handful of ‘paid up hooligans’ who really do
not care what culminates after the exercise.

That explains why corrupt leaders have been having it easy
as compared to the straight and honest ones who would have otherwise been the
best options.

Considering that whoever wins on Friday might be as well
your next leader, participating in these primaries will give you the power to
decide how you want to be governed by nominating the candidate who best suits your
views and will best represent your views at both the local and national level.

If you really think that a certain leader in office is not
performing their duties satisfactorily, you can only show them the door by
voting against them. Refraining from doing so can result in the same people or
a worse one, being elected for the next five years.

Therefore, if you don't vote in these
primaries, please don’t complain about who wins or the wrongs these leaders
will instigate in the next five years.

2. Elections are not just about the President.

Other than the President, there are many other positions
that definitely way in the future of Kenya and your local area. Through voting
you have the opportunity to influence the government and governance from the
local level up to the national level.

How much the next
president can do will definitely depend on the people we will offer to him to constitute
his government. If you allow dunderheads to get into power, be lest assured
that you be faced with another five years of total agony. The consequences of
ignoring such important exercise can reverberate for years.

If you let in
opportunists and corrupt leaders get their way through the backdoor, just
expect them to cripple the President’s agenda, both in the National Assembly
and in the counties.

3. The margin of victory
is very important.

Any voter might feel that a single vote does not make any
difference. However, the balance tilts when this becomes a ward, constituency
or national attitude, resulting to thousands of votes not cast.

By casting their vote, citizens may not necessarily be able
to get the best candidate elected, politics being what it is, but by avoiding
casting their vote they improve the chances of the unsuitable ones winning the
polls. At the end, it is only you the voter who has to suffer through poor
governance.

One vote, especially in a competitive election is very crucial.
You may assume that it is ‘just one vote’
and cannot make the difference, but all you have to bear in mind there are so
many other people like you who are thinking
the same way as you. In the end, that translates to hundreds or even
thousands of uncast votes which may be the reason your candidate loses.

You must vote because even if the candidate you loathe is
destined to win in a landslide, you can make a dent in their margin of victory.
That limits how much of a ‘mandate’ they can claim once in office, encouraging
them to promote more moderate policies so as not to jeopardise their
re-election. Remember, people elected in squeakers are reminded of it
constantly for the people would not let them forget they were not elected by a
plurality.

Conversely, even if your preferred candidate is poised to
win, adding to their margin of victory can only help their advance their agenda
in office.

4. A vote for a
third force can have an impact.

In an election where there are two very strong candidates, there
are possibilities that the outcome would be decided by a third force.

Some undecided voters might sway towards a neutral candidate,
thus reducing the chances for each of the two frontrunners. In such a scenario,
every vote counts and your vote might be the difference between the loss and
the win for your preferred candidate.

5. Leaders tend to
respond to people who bother to show up.

Elected leaders in most instances respond to voters’ policy
preferences and award a greater chunk of public resources to the people who
bothered to vote them in. that is why in some cases you find leaders neglecting
certain areas they perceive never voted for them.

While it is true that the outcome of elections is seldom
predictable, by not casting your vote, you are simply giving up on the chance
of getting heard.

In conclusion, we cannot deny that Kenyans have been time
and again being disappointed by the people they elect into office. For the past
five decades, we have been struggling with rampant corruption, unsure economy and
other uncertainties. Election after election has seen ineffective governments
come to power that have done more harm than good.

However, not casting one's vote will only worsen the
condition. It is our duty as responsible citizens of to make informed decisions
and choose the best candidates from those presented. Moreover, with the context
of the 2010 Constitution, it wouldn't be long before the system of elections is
improved.